The presidential election results were still rolling in last week as a political newsletter started speculating on who would take key jobs in the next Trump White House.
One name stood out to several former senior Trump staffers: Ben Howard, who was rumored to be in line for a top legislative affairs job.
Phones started burning up as aides reminded the Trump team that Mr. Howard was involved in elevating Cassidy Hutchinson, the White House staffer who became the star witness in Democrats’ high-profile investigation into the events of Jan. 6, 2021.
“She was a White House intern. He picked her up and put her in the middle of the game,” one former senior White House aide told The Washington Times, explaining why she is on his blacklist. “If you’re thinking about this guy for legislative affairs, just remember he created one of your problems.”
While Washington is focused on the unorthodox picks President-elect Donald Trump has already announced for his Cabinet, a fascinating drama is playing out behind the scenes as his team argues not over who should get in, but over who should be kept out of Trump 2.0.
Those working alongside the Trump transition team say everyone has a blacklist of people who should be persona non grata because they blundered their time in the first administration or have since committed sins against the MAGA movement.
“Everybody’s walking around with a list of guys they can’t stand,” the White House aide said. “It’s not just a matter of getting the right people, it’s a matter of not getting the wrong people.”
“That’s where all the action is. That’s the real Game of Thrones,” said another former senior Trump administration official.
Those who were too critical of Mr. Trump’s behavior surrounding the 2020 election are in trouble, as are those deemed too close to former Vice President Mike Pence or Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the GOP’s longtime leader in the Senate.
People who ran agencies in the first Trump administration figured they were blacklisted for participating in The Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025.
“I’m still blacklisted,” one former agency chief said.
And the White House aide who spoke to The Times said there’s a particular move afoot to urge Mr. Trump to punish anyone associated with Ms. Hutchinson.
That includes Mr. Howard, who did not respond to an inquiry from The Times for this story.
But the aide said the “Cassidy cancer” should also include Mark Meadows, who was chief of staff for Mr. Trump and gave Ms. Hutchinson the access that was instrumental in her damaging — and now highly disputed — testimony against Mr. Trump.
Some of the blacklist activity is about settling scores, but there’s also a sense that Mr. Trump’s first go-around was hindered by bad personnel choices. His surprise election in 2016 left the GOP scrambling to staff up a White House and the thousands of political appointments spread across the Executive Branch.
This time, they’ve had years to prepare better — and to understand the risks of getting it wrong again.
Political pros said many fights are playing out behind the scenes.
Folks with ties to The Heritage Foundation, the granddaddy of conservative think tanks and author of the now disavowed Project 2025, are vying for supremacy with those from the America First Policy Institute, an upstart operation begun by veterans of Trump 1.0.
Donations to Mr. Trump’s campaign are a factor. Those who gave to him back when the GOP nomination was in doubt are going to have a leg up on those who contributed to an opponent, such as Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Trump staffers said people keep track of who gave and who didn’t, and they’re quick to point it out.
Ties to the outgoing Senate leadership of Mr. McConnell are also a black mark, Trump team staffers said. On the other side of the equation, those who have ties to Vice President-elect J.D. Vance, currently a senator from Ohio, have a leg up.
While blacklists are being compiled, it’s not clear who to send them to just yet.
Eventually, the Trump world expects there to be a figure at the transition to eyeball names, and that person will get flooded with suggestions for whom to keep on the outside.
The picks Mr. Trump has announced so far, chiefly for high-profile jobs, have gone to fiercely loyal lawmakers and staffers.
At the White House, Mr. Trump has brought back longtime aides and fans, naming four of them as deputy chiefs of staff. Among them is Stephen Miller, an architect of immigration policy in the first go-around. He is coming back as a deputy chief of staff for policy.
In most of his Cabinet-level announcements, Mr. Trump has sought out moderately distinguished officials whose chief qualification appears to be fealty to the Trump political movement.
Mr. Trump has also publicly announced he will not ask former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley or former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo back.
The Pompeo announcement was a particular surprise, but sources said he was a victim of blacklisting after several key Trump confidantes argued Mr. Pompeo was an obstacle to the incoming president’s goals.
• Stephen Dinan can be reached at sdinan@washingtontimes.com.